Mothers cut back on personal spending to buy kids’ gifts

Typically, when I’m out holiday shopping, I throw something into the basket for myself–a new pair of heels, a velvet dress, a beaded sweater. It’s the one time of year when I buy myself something superfluous and fancy–that’s not a pair of jeans or a T-shirt from Target. Not this year. My husband’s company just went through a round of lay-offs. He survived but who knows what next year will bring. I’m cutting back and what money we are spending on the holidays is going to buy the kids a few things for their stockings.

An article in today’s New York Times made me realize that I’m not alone.

For millions of mothers across the nation, this holiday season is turning into a time of sacrifice. Weathering the first severe economic downturn of their adult lives, these women are discovering that a practice they once indulged without thinking about it, shopping a bit for themselves at the holidays, has to give way to their children’s wish lists.

Some 61 percent of mothers will shop less for themselves this year, compared with 56 percent of all women and 45 percent of men, according to a survey of shoppers’ intentions by the NPD Group, a consultant firm. In September and October, sales of women’s apparel fell precipitously compared with the same months the year before,

It may be noble sacrifice for women to spend less on themselves to benefit their families. But it is bad news for the troubled retail industry, which relies heavily on sales of women’s apparel.

“As we go into the holiday, it’s not going to be ‘One for my sister and one for me,'” said Marie Driscoll, an analyst for Standard & Poor’s Equity Research Services. “You might not even get one for your sister so you can buy great gifts for her kids.”

Reyne Rice, who studies toy trends for the Toy Industry Association, said mothers do at least 80 percent of the holiday shopping in a family, and in past recessions they have been the first to do without. They tend not to get a new coat for themselves, Ms. Rice said, so they can provide for their children.

Analysts say the pullback by women in this downturn is among the most drastic they have seen.

“You just keep hearing, ‘We’ve stopped shopping altogether,'” said John D. Morris, a retail analyst with Wachovia, adding that the typical woman is “finding fashion in the back of her closet.”

Are you cutting back on personal spending to help pay for gifts and holiday activities for your kids?